Last weekend of summer

 Saturday Grace went to Cayley’s and got her hair done. After we went to a new pizza place that we’ve been watching being built for ever. It was pretty good. 

Today the YW presidency spoke in sacrament meeting. I think it went well. Nicole and Ann are amazing and I loved their talks. 

Rob and I talk on the phone a lot. I think we actually have been talking more than we ever have. Of course when we were first dating and getting to know each other we talked a lot. He more than me. He is much more talkative than I am. Then we had decades where we talked a lot but we were busy with kids and callings, chores and hobbies, jobs and family. These last few months we don’t see each other and are both sometimes bored. In the summer I don’t work and my calling is light. He doesn’t have a calling in MD yet. Our kids are grown except for Grace and she is busy. We miss each other. We had our 24th wedding anniversary last month. That’s a long time to live with someone, to share a life, to grow and to work together, to disagree and compromise and move forward, to laugh together and plan together and watch TV together and pack up everything to move across the country together again and again. We are used to being together and it’s weird to live apart.  So we talk a lot lot. Him more than me, he’s still more talkative ;)

Ethan got to talk to us a couple of times this weekend. We were filling out his FAFSA but still it’s fun to chat for a minute. 

I have one more day of summer left. Tomorrow. Then it’s back to work. Heigh ho Heigh ho!

Also it’s official I’m a crazy cat lady. Idk how many cat pictures I send to Rob each day but definitely enough to qualify. 

Last week of summer

 

This little Darcy girl is so cute!

Today was the last day of band camp. They had a parent preview that was so hot it gave me a headache! I don’t know how the kids have done it all day every day. Seriously it is so brutal out there. My heat tolerance has gone down a lot the last few years. Anyway Grace is a warrior. She made it and was a great leader. Her band captaining is a role she takes very seriously. 

Ruby. Oh how I love this little girl!

Obviously there is no rhyme or reason to the order of these pictures. We got to play housekeeping hoarders edition and stuff all our stuff into the bathrooms and laundry room so we could get new carpet. Our house repairs are done!! Yay!

Almalfi coast. It’s on my list!

Cora Rae, 💕💕💕

More evidence of my good home making skillz.

Chris got a new job. Yay! I’m so glad that happened quickly. I got to talk to Sierra and Jenna and Hannah today so that was great. 

Back to work next week. I’m not ready!

A little trip (that I’m not on)

Jenna and Hannah went to San Diego. They are staying with Anna. Yesterday they went to the beach, today to the San Diego Zoo! So fun! 

Coco, Arrow and Ruby study the map:) To my knowledge none of them can read. 🤣

Uncle Clayton makes a nice seat!

Sweetest baby in the world!

Sister, Sister!! 

 The band has a theme every day of camp. The clarinets were minions yesterday and they were so cute!

Today Ivana and I went out to lunch and then after I went to the movies to finally see Where the Crawdads Sing. The book was better but I also liked the movie. 

Random

 

Yesterday when  I went to the temple.  It was so very nice.  I did have a surprisingly weird moment.  I was sitting in the endowment and they said something that made me go “hmnm” and fleetingly thought of”what if it’s not true?” Is there another alternative? The thought was brief but after as I was sitting in the celestial room taking a quiet moment to pray and to contemplate I remembered and asked about it in prayer.  It was not like I doubted exactly.  I don't doubt but I am also  well aware that anyone can fall, no matter how firm a testimony they have, or what kinds of experiences they have had.  You are always susceptible and must always be building and working to stay strong and faithful. So I prayed about it and felt in that moment that it was just a passing thought and not my true feelings and that I did know that this was the true church, that I was in the house of the Lord, that Jesus is my Savior and this is His covenant path back to Our Father in Heaven. Over. 

Today I went to church alone.  Grace was feeling sick and stayed home.  Rob is in MD.  As I sat in sacrament meeting I did not feel lonely but what I did feel was a strong witness of the spirit during each talk.  They were powerful and uplifting.  Then when I went to YW our lesson was also very tender, the Spirit was strong and there were many tears in our eyes as Sister Elliot taught about the temple.  Ashley Tree shared an experience she had when she was 8 years old and the Kansas City MO temple was dedicated.  She was there with her parents and had a sacred witness of the prophet and the apostles that were there.  She said she can remember so vividly seeing them, she couldn’t really remember their faces but she could see a halo of glory around them that just glowed and she knew they were the Lord’s servants.  She was very emotional and I think everyone could feel how important that experience was to her.  Alicia (Elliot) shared a story as well.  Jared, her husband, served his mission in Venezuela.  He served in Caracas and while he was there had the opportunity to teach a man named Luis and his wife named Jenni. They were baptized and became so faithful.  Jared has kept in touch with Luis all these years.  They are very poor.  He served as the branch president for many years.  So one day Jared’s father in law came to him (his FIL was a pilot) and said I’ve been thinking about your friend Luis.  I can get them flights to the US. If they can get passports their family can go to the temple.  So Jared called Luis and talked to him about it.  As he did Luis just broke down in tears.  He said he had just had a sister in his office and felt prompted to ask her if she had a temple recommend.  She said no, and that even if she did she would never be able to go.  He then felt inspired to pull his recommend out of his wallet and share with the sister that he had carried this for years, knowing he may never actually be able to go to the temple, and that it was his greatest wish and desire to take his family to be sealed for time and eternity.  He testified to her of the importance of temples and she left committed to work on getting hers.  Then he put his head down on his desk and cried because his desire was so great and it seemed so impossible.  That’s when Jared called.  What an answer to this faithful man’s prayer.  A few months later they were able to come to SLC.  Jared and Alicia picked them up and were hosting them for their trip.  Alicia said after their long trip with three little kids she thought they would be tired and hungry and ready to rest and relax.  She asked if they’d like to go get dinner before they went home and the family said, please they’d like to drive by the temple.  They did and on that drive and the following day when they went to the temple for the first time Alicia said she learned many lessons about loving the temple, about what a privilege it is to go there, and how sacred a blessing it is to be sealed as a family.  The lesson went really well and all the girls felt the Spirit I am sure.  I did, and was so grateful that the very next day after I talked to the Lord about my moment of concern and then forgot about it He blessed me with not one but several witnesses of the truthfulness of the Gospel, of His presence in my life, and of His love for His children.  God does not care if we doubt, if we worry about things, if we are uncertain, He only cares that we seek Him, that we try, that we trust, that we have faith, that we grow and reach for Him.  I love that.  I love that He meets us where we are, lifts us where we are, accepts us where we are, helps us grow at our own pace. He is a good God.

 

I listened to a really amazing podcast this last week.  It was by Christopher Mattson called Six Ways to be a Better Boat Builder.  It was a BYU devotional.   It was engaging and really great advice on things to do to follow the Savior.  The analogies were drawn from Nephi and his boat building and the Brother of Jared and his boat building and how we each need to build our boats to navigate life’s waters. 

The three sacrament  talks were so good. The elders quorum presidency spoke (our turn is next week).

Andrew Hill spoke about the temple. He told about the Philadelphia Temple being built and the roll Vai Sikahema played in that process, he shared the story of when Vai’s family first went to the temple in New Zealand and the great personal sacrifices they went thru. 

Chris Castellanos spoke next. I don’t know him, he’s new in the ward but he and his family seem amazing. He spoke so enthusiastically about his love of the gospel and his testimony of living prophets and apostles. His energy was contagious and his joy was palpable. 

Lastly Jared Elliot spoke. He talked about ministering. He shared a sweet story about his son Jeremy. When Jeremy was a priest a 72 year old man named Lynn got called as the priest quorum advisor. Lynn was awesome and built great relationships with the YM. He because Jeremy’s good friend. They were ministering companions, they went to the temple together, sometimes when Jeremy had a really tough day he’d call Lynn who would come get him and they’d go get burgers and talk. The two men, one old and one young became unlikely best friends. 

While Jeremy was on his mission Jared got a call one night to come to the hospital. Lynn was dying and Jared was his ministering brother. When he arrived at the hospital the doctor said that Lynn had hours to live. Jared steeled himself and went in the room where he knew he would be asked to give a priesthood blessing. As he laid his hands on Lynn’s head a loud and unmistakable prompting from the Holy Ghost told Jared to bless Lynn that he would recover. With some trepidation Jared pronounced the blessing that God had for Lynn. For the next 17 days Jared went to the hospital every day and visited Lynn, who was miraculously recovering. He recovered and came home and lives several more happy and productive years and when he passes away his best friend, and his best friends dad were able to go to his funeral together, grateful for the ministering he had done for them, and the ministering they had been able to do for him. That is the Christ like love we all need to learn to show and feel. 

It was a powerful meeting. 

Todays Pday letter:

“Having a native comp has been chulo. This is prolly the first time where Spanish is the main language i operate in. While I am quite pleased with my ability to have a real relationship with someone in just Spanish, my time with elder Jara has shown me the reality of how bad my spanish is. It's crazy. People talk to us and he just understands, like everything. And when he wants to explain something complicated, he just does it. Muy impresionante. I'm learning quick though too.

This week we were talking to people in a park and this drunk guy called us over. He was just telling us that God loves us and loves him and loves all of us, which was a great message to be fair. He was a little confused but we talked with him and when I said I had lived in LA before he took the green Dodgers hat right off his head and gave it to me. I'm a Dodgers fan for sentimental reasons #chowdercrew. What a nice drunk colombiano man. Meeting random people is just the most fun mixed bag imaginable.

We tried organizing a barbacoa to help our ward meet our amigos. We have a dope family the Minguito's who was gonna cook the meat and let us use their backyard. So we go about inviting all our amigos and all the ward to a party more or less. We wanted to have enough food so we went to Costco cause Spain has one and dropped like 40 euros on meat. Day finally comes around and all the members flake on us. God knew it was gonna happen so all our amigos flaked too. So us the minguitos and a whole lot of meat enjoyed the night. Silver lining is the one person who came is a less active lady nobody knew who went to church yesterday and has friends now. Worth it.

I had an awesome experience this week. In sacrament I was praying just asking God about his love for me. The cool answer I got was "look for my love in the most christlike people around you" how have I not thought of that before?!? So with that hopeful thought I went into my studies and read a talk called the virtue of kindness. It was also really uplifting and left me wanting to be kind always. I want to always build others up now. I never wanna say something or do anything that tears somebody else down. I'm trying to be that christlike source of kindness others can look towards to feel God's love. It really has given me a new angle on what charity is and the question what would Jesus do. If I'm hoping to reflect God's love to everyone I interact with I'm finna watch myself a lot closer.“

Weekend

 This morning I woke up and then fell back asleep. Then I woke up again when Grace walked in the room. It was 9:15 and I had a reservation to do an endowment at 10:00. Here’s one of the great thing about living in Orlando, I got up, showered, and made it! It was really nice. After I sat and prayed in the celestial room for awhile. I am grateful for temples.

The rest of the day involved errands, talking to Rob, and a fun phone call where Penny made Darcy laugh her head off! So cute!!

Friday

Grace had sectionals this morning at Madison’s. I had house workers here. Their progress is slow. I don’t know how fast it should go but I’ll just say that they come late, lunch long, and leave early. They are Brazilian. Nice guys. Hopefully their work is good. 

All the sections had rehearsals on their own. The drum line had the police called on them by a grumpy neighbor. The police joined them and took a photo with them. Lol. 

After sectionals they went to Chick-fil-A and then Goodwill and then Lilly and Alyssa hung out here. 

Grace had a busy day, I had kind of a boring day. I did clean the bathroom and fold some laundry, read my book and when they left for the evening I went to Disney Springs to enjoy a nice walk and browsing. Going to DS always chases the blahs away, there are so many things to see and look at. Fun people to watch and nice AC in all the shops. 

Ezzie at the beach. That boy found a new love, shoveling!

When I got home I swam and chatted with Alec and Kelly. It was fun to have a long visit. 

This guy is my shadow. Grace’s cat. He normally loves Rob best but when there is no one else around he follows me. (Like a dog). Any guesses where this photo was taken? Yep, in the bathroom. 

 

A/C woes

Our A/C isn’t working, again. I called Rob and he walked me thru blowing it out. I don’t know if it fixed the problem. I called the A/C guy, hopefully he’ll come tomorrow but I don’t know if that little miracle will happen. I was supposed to go to the movies with my friends but instead I was flushing that darn A/C.  Luckily I had just read in Philippians 4 “but I rejoice in the Lord greatly, that now at the last your care of me hath flourished again; wherein ye were also careful, but ye lacked opportunity. Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am in, therefore to be content. I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound: everywhere and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all these through Christ which strengtheneth me…But my God shall supply all you need according to his riches in glory by Christ, Jesus.”  It’s been on my mind and reminds me that in all circumstances I need to just be grateful to Christ. Life is full of challenges.

After 10 hours of band camp together band kids go to each other’s houses to spend time together. 

 Lincoln helps out with chores. He brought in the mail today. He’s bored at home with me… being outside all day at band camp is too hot for him.

Camp day 2🔥🔥🌞

Here’s some of Lu’s BFF’s eating lunch. She was probably throwing up. So far her treatments aren’t making much difference but she just keeps drinking and eating and throwing it back up. She loves band and does not want to quit so I guess she thinks it’s worth the embarrassment and inconvenience. She’s a rock star!
 

Every year I am shocked at how these kids spend hours out in the Florida sun marching around. Today was Hawaiian day.  Every day has a theme and Grace is all about it!

P day/Hardcore Band

We had a fun talk with Ethan today. He is no longer on tech assignment! He’s doing great and loving Spain. 

Grace and Katie

 Hardcore band camp started. That means 8-5 every day out in the hot hot sun. These kids are dedicated. I dropped by popsicles at noon for the clarinets. 

And lastly I have the cutest nephews ever.  Val and Anna and I were FaceTiming and Arrow must have gotten tired waiting for us to finish because before long…

Sunday

Our little twig of a ward met today. It’s so small now. It seems so odd to go to church and see pews empty.

This evening Grace had a bunch of friends over for a night before hard core band camp sleep over. We made nachos and Lettie brought cupcakes. They are loud and silly and so cute. The house is full and I love that! 

 

More Disney

 Years ago we went on the Disney Dream vacation.  We came to Florida, it was the summer of 2007 and we lived in Texas.  I had never been to Disney World and dreamed of going with the whole family.  Greg and Dani were newly married, Grace was 2 years old, Nana and Abba came with us, and we all went.  We stayed at the Animal Kingdom Lodge, which is beautiful.  Our trip was wonderful.  We remember together how super hot and humid it was when we went to HS and we stood melting in the sun watching the Star Wars parade.  We remember the Amazing Race around Epcot, the giraffes eating their breakfast right outside our hotel room windows each morning, the fabulous Luau at the Polynesian resort that years later we learned Ethan remembered as him having gone to Hawaii (he was only 4 so that makes sense but it was so funny to hear 10+ years later), meeting princesses, seeing fireworks, eating treats, and all the Magical experiences we had.  Today when we go to the parks and see families on their Disney dream vacation I actually feel a little bad for them.  Coming in the heat, crowds, high prices and long lines, when you are only coming once and feel so pressed to see it all is hard.  It takes stamina and it often looks like crying kids, short tempered parents, hemorrhaging wallets, and many small frustrations.  (it is much better having a season pass and going as needed instead of all at once.) We also had all those challenges.  I loved it, was exhausted by it. Life is like that. I think most people have this idea in their head of the perfect life. As you are trying to live it you run into long lines, hot days, rides that don’t work, babies with diarrhea (that happened too, while we were waiting to meet Cinderella) and all.the.things! 

The thing we need to do is find the magic in the mess, because there is always a mess.  

Yesterday Grace and her friends went to Epcot and then to the DAmicos. They wore Lincoln out! Today he is exhausted. 

She made reservations for us to go today and got us in the virtual cue for Guardians. We went and the ride was amazing and awful. It was like space mountain and the tea cups mixed together with awesome graphics! I won’t ride it again but ✔️.

This afternoon I made a strawberry pie, for dinner:) With just me and Lu here my balanced diet game is not on point. 

Disney

It rained a lot this afternoon but before that I went to Epcot with Louise. We got to ride so many rides before 1pm! We rode Spaceship Earth, Nemo, The Lands, Soarin, the 3 Cabereos and Ratatouille! That’s a record! We had a place in the queue for Guardians but I had to leave to meet Grace for her appointment before our turn came up. It was really nice to catch up!

Grace has band camp, then her appointment. We went to Bahama Breeze for dinner. 

 This photo was from a few weeks ago. Lincoln and his brother Loki (who Grace was babysitting) meeting Mickey!

And here’s some great news: Emma graduated! So proud of her!

Kind of boring day

 Grace had a sectional here this morning. Then she went to the mall with some friends. She cleaned her room and then hung out with friends again. A good summer day. 

I had a boring day that felt like I didn’t do anything. I did some laundry, talked on the phone with a friend. I had the carpet guy come to measure for our restoration and made dinner. I read my book, enjoyed our warm pool water, watched TV, took out the trash and cleaned the kitchen. I talked to Ezra and enjoyed listening to some stories with him. I talked to Marshall a couple times. He called before his dentist appointment and after. He had to be sedated and have 8 caps put on. It felt mostly unproductive but soon school will start and I will be busy so I have to enjoy it.

Well, it was a day. We went to the doctor and got good news/bad news. Good news it’s not EDS related. Good news it’s not gastroparesis. Good news it can be fixed. Probably. Bad news it’s not going to be quick or easy. 

She was diagnosed with rumination syndrome. I’d never heard of it. From the internet:

Rumination syndrome, or merycism, is a chronic motilitydisorder characterized by effortless regurgitation of most meals following consumption, due to the involuntary contraction of the muscles around the abdomen.^[1] There is no retching, nausea, heartburn, odour, or abdominal pain associated with the regurgitation, as there is with typical vomiting, and the regurgitated food is undigested. The disorder has been historically documented as affecting only infants, young children, and people with cognitive disabilities (the prevalence is as high as 10% in institutionalized patients with various mental disabilities). It is increasingly being diagnosed in a greater number of otherwise healthy adolescents and adults, though there is a lack of awareness of the condition by doctors, patients and the general public.

 So it’s not an eating disorder or a mental illness but rather a reaction to stress, like PTSD. We were taken aback by the diagnosis. It is rare but Grace’s doctor does have 4 other patients right now who she is also working with that also have the same diagnosis.

Grace said to the doctor that she isn’t stressed. 

But here’s the thing, Grace is very mentally tough. She is a fighter and a go getter. Everyone has stuff. I said to her, and the doctor, that I didn’t see it that way. 

First off  she is a rising senior. This is a stressful time for everyone. You are on the cusp of adulthood. Huge decisions lay ahead of you. Many young people leave home for the first time at the end of high school. Many are deciding where to go to school, what to study, who to be. 

Second she lives with a life long chronic illness that is always exhibiting  new symptoms on her and which is unlikely to get better. How could that not be stressful? 

Next we are moving across the country, again stressful by definition. She was planning on going to school in Florida and being near us or even living with us. That safety net is no longer available since we are leaving. She could easily feel abandoned and resentful. (Stress). Also she has a difficult relationship with her dad, and feels like I am not a great advocate for her. Again, stress. She’s actually been asking to go to therapy for that for awhile. 

The doctor said oh yes that is a lot. 

So there are a couple of pieces that will have to work together to get Grace past this. First she’s going to start seeing an integrated medicine specialist who will

help her learn how to manage the physical stuff. She will see a counselor. She already met with a dietician once and will continue to, she will have blood work done every 3 weeks and sew the GI every 3 weeks. We also need to squeeze in visits with the rheumatologist. I don’t know how I’m going to work and get that done. 

I walked out of there feeling like someone threw a grenade at me. I feel terrible for Grace, although grateful that in a few months this could be in the past. I also feel so sad about it, and responsible.  Mothers jobs are to teach, love, advocate for, help in every way. So although it’s not about me it is something staring me in the face and  I wish I had done things  differently. Maybe we wouldn’t be having this particular problem.

It’s a lot to process. Life is so interesting. There is always a new challenge, a new joy too, but for today it feels more like a challenge. Thankfully each trial, experience, joy and defeat, all the things, gives us the opportunity to walk with Christ. To let him carry our heavy burdens, to be sanctified by Him, they allow us to get to know Him even more. Each day we choose to grow in faith and to see His hand in our lives or to give up. I choose faith. 

Also I made peach pie, for dinner. 

Birthday Boy!!

Ezra is two years old today! He celebrated with a birthday breakfast, a day at the water park, and a free slurpee for 7-11 day! I love that little boy and his amazing parents!

 

Sunday

 

Colleen and I

We went to church, then went home and had dinner together and then Grace and I said goodbye to Rob and hit the road. We made it half way home and will have an easy drive tomorrow. 

I miss that guy already. We had a really nice week together. 

Rain

We woke up and it was raining and it pretty much rained all day. Luckily we didn’t really have any plans. We went to Target and Rob put together a dresser. 

I read my book.

We sat around. 

Grace and Jeffrey went on a date, which is fun. Rob and I went to Outback on a dinner date too. 

Sister Hamilton posted mission pictures so we got to see some new photos of our Bubster. We talked to Hannah and Jenna and Dani, all separately. 

Talked to Val and Dani together and we booked our last excursions for our upcoming cruise.

It was a nice day:)

House picking

First how cute is this? Darcy is getting so big!

We drove to VA to look at the models our builder is building here. We picked the one we want, now we have to choose our options and all. After we went to look at the lots and know which one we want. Next Saturday Rob will go write a contract.
 

We were going to go to the River Concert but it was cancelled (bomb threat) so we went to the Martines’ instead. We had dinner at the country club and played cards. So fun!

 Here I am telling a riveting story about something🤣